08 Sep 06
It's quiet in the coupe, with very little noise from the wind or the tyres. The engine is audible only when you want it to be. In the convertible you hear a little bit more of the engine, which is a boon, and a lot more of the wind, which is a pain. If all you want to do in your XKR convertible is cruise around slowly enjoying the sunshine, you've just wasted £8,495 by buying the R version rather than the XK.
The steering feels significantly more responsive than in the XK. There's nothing slack about that car's set-up, but in the R every degree of steering wheel movement makes a difference to the car's position on the road. The throttle and the gearchange paddles are equally immediate and rewarding to use.
The big markets for this car are the US and the UK, and it's easy to regard the XK as a neat blend of British and American qualities (power balanced by refinement, luxury in harmony with agility). The R version keeps those characteristics; they've not been flattened by the arrival of the extra 20bhp.
No-one will mistake it for a German product. The SL, M6 and 911 are all rivals, whether on price or performance, but the Mercedes and BMW lack the Jag's agility, while the Porsche is much more the intense sports car, lacking the XKR's comfort. And if you favour a bit more sportiness and a bit less plushness, no-one at Jaguar is denying that a hotter version, currently referred to as the XKR-R, will follow.
Inside and out, it looks simple. No fancy shapes, no clutter of switches and knobs, as most of the non-vital functions are taken care of via Jag's easy-to-use touchscreen system. And the 21st century electronics stay behind the scenes, with no interfering adaptive cruise control or lane departure warning systems trying to rein you in or scare you off; above all else, this is an overtaking car.
Driven: Jaguar XKR
Visit our forum to have your say on the future of Jaguar and Ford
